FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb to Step Down

Food and Drug Commissioner Scott Gottlieb has handed in his resignation and will step down in about a month, it was announced Tuesday.

Gottlieb, who lives in Connecticut with his wife and three daughters and commutes to Washington each week, wanted to spend more time with his family, according to the Washington Post.

President Trump, who reportedly wanted Gottlieb to remain at the FDA, praised the outgoing commissioner in a pair of tweets Tuesday, mentioning the work he’d done to lower drug prices and approve generic drugs.

“Scott Gottlieb, who has done an absolutely terrific job as Commissioner of the FDA, plans to leave government service sometime next month,” Trump wrote. “Scott has helped us to lower drug prices, get a record number of generic drugs approved and onto the market, and so many other things. He and his talents will be greatly missed.”

Gottlieb, who also served in several top positions at the FDA under President George W. Bush, had enjoyed bipartisan appeal since his stint as the agency’s chief began in May 2017. He took a particular interest in discouraging underage e-cigarette use, and as a cancer survivor also prioritized the approval of treatments for cancer and other serious ailments.

Health and Human Services secretary Alex Azar praised Gottlieb in a statement, saying HHS is “proud of the remarkable work” he has done.

“He has been an exemplary public health leader, aggressive advocate for American patients, and passionate promoter of innovation,” Azar said. “The public health of our country is better off for the work Scott and the entire FDA team have done over the last two years.”